Please, Let Me Hold You
by dantekitty221
Summary: The passing of Eli's grandmother shocked her whole family, leaving everyone in despair. Eli herself became distant from all her friends. Heartbroken Nozomi just wants to see Eli's radiant smile again...


_*Contains Yuri*_

 **Chapter One**

A hazy, orange sun was lazily setting behind the Otonokizaka High building, painting the sky a vibrant magenta. It was a beautiful evening scene, with clubs all participating in their daily events. The art club had set their easels in front of the school, depicting beautiful strokes of pink, orange, and yellow. Their art perfectly portrayed the beauty of the calm sky with cherry blossoms dancing through the wind. Sounds of heavy gasping and whistle blowing blasted through the air as the track team finished their two mile run around the track. How could this evening be any more perfect?

Nozomi Toujou, the student council vice president, sat against the school wall with tarot cards were spread out before her. One particular card lay right in front of her. An uncanny smile spread across her face as she picked it up. The Lovers card, face up. "Is today the day…" she whispered as a certain girl crossed her mind. Nozomi stood up and swept her bangs out of her face as she looked up towards the top of the building. The student council room. Although she could not see her, Nozomi knew there was a beautiful blonde girl sitting in that room. What was she doing? Was she doing schoolwork, student council president duties, sleeping, or browsing the internet?

Nozomi had always known what Eli was doing…but not anymore. A couple months ago, Eli's grandmother passed away. Her death took had a huge impact on Eli's life. She became reclusive and attended school less, so Nozomi would go over to her house every day to check in on her. A couple weeks after her grandmother's death, Eli had started to refuse opening her door. Eventually, she became extremely distant from Nozomi and the rest of Muse.

Eli had always been a tough and prideful girl…and that is one of the things Nozomi loved about her. Whenever Eli took the stage to address Otonokizaka High, Nozomi could feel her heart skip a beat. The way Eli spoke and held herself aroused Nozomi. She was proud to be Eli's vice president and best friend. Yet…she wanted to be more than friends. Eli never seemed to notice though, and after her grandmother died, she just pushed Nozomi away. Tear drops hit the ground next to Nozomi's feet. "Why does it have to be like this," she whispered. A pain clawed its way through her heart as Nozomi fell to the ground.

"…mi….Nozo….NOZOMI!"

"Uwah?!" Nozomi nearly screamed when she felt the frigid water on her body. "THAT'S COLD?! WHO…" She rubbed her eyes and looked up, still a little bleary. A cat-like smile appeared across the other girls face. "Rin…" Nozomi sighed, "I almost had a heart attack." Rin snickered and flicked Nozomi across the forehead. "Not my fault you fell asleep, nya! You're lucky it was only me. What if some creep came to take advantage of you?!" As Rin started laughing maniacally, Nozomi took this as a chance for revenge. She grabbed Rin by the collar and turned her around, and…"WASHI WASHI WASHI!"

"NOOO NOT THE GROPING!"

"THIS IS WHAT YOU GET!"

Eli opened her eyes, awakened by the yelling. "Uhh…" Her head hurt, her eyes were crusty from the tears, and she had drooled on a school financial report. "D-damn…what the…." Eli stomped over to the window and swung it open to look at her fellow idols struggling below. "DO YOU BITCHES MIND I WAS BUSY WITH IMPORTANT…STUFF!"

"EEK!" Rin sprung up and scurried away, frightened by Eli's sudden anger. "E….Eli…." Nozomi slowly turned her head upwards to look at the cranky blond. "S…sorry…Eli…"

"Sorry my ass. Be more considerate next time." She slammed the windows shut, disappearing behind the glass.

"…." Nozomi grabbed her chest, feeling the pain sear through her heart once again. "You used to be so kind…" she whispered as tears dropped from the tip of her nose.

The sun no longer sat lazily in the sky as it dipped below several buildings. The moon was starting to dominate the sky. Nozomi leaned over the railing in front of her door, catching glimpse of twinkling stars that were starting to appear. A sudden breeze lifted Nozomi's pigtails off her shoulders, and she felt the first chill of the night make its entrance. The purple haired buxom girl, lost in thought, grabbed her key from her pocket. Before she could unlock her door, a hand grabbed her wrist. Nozomi screamed, her first reaction was slapping the person who was assaulting her.

"Nozo…mi…" Eli put her hand up to her cheek, which was starting to burn with pain.

"Oh my god. Eli. Eli, I am so sorry! I just…."

"It's okay. It was my fault for sneaking up on you like that." Eli smiled as she locked eyes with Nozomi.

"H-haha…" Nozomi laughed awkwardly, turning her blushing face away. The beautiful blonde took a step towards Nozomi, and without losing another second, she embraced her longtime friend.

"I'm sorry. For how I yelled at you and Rin today. I'm so sorry. I was just…cranky. I feel so horrible." Eli sniffled, trying to hold back tears. Nozomi just stood there, frozen in awe. This was the longest conversation they have had together in months. Eli took a step back, and Nozomi was struck by how gorgeous Eli is. Tears running down her face, the redness made her eyes a shocking blue. The purple twin-tailed girl could not stop staring at her. "Eli, come inside for some tea!" Nozomi gave her a gentle smile and opened her door. Eli clutched both of her hands, putting them up to her mouth.

"I…I can't….I'm sorry…"

"But Eli, we've barely talked for months…"

"I'm sorry Nozomi…." She sobbed, "I'm going to go." Before Nozomi could respond, Eli whipped around and ran off. Feeling defeated, Nozomi entered her home and found her way to her bedroom, collapsing onto her bed. She reached out for a certain stuffed animal. It was a cat, dressed as a shrine maiden. Eli won this for Nozomi a while ago.

" _It's a shrine maiden, just like you!"_ Nozomi recalled Eli's words. _"It's also cute like you Nozomi!"_

Nozomi clutched the cat as tears welled up in her eyes. "Eli…I want my Eli back…"

Eli ran.

She ran as far as her feet and heart could take her. She ran past the school and her home. Finally, she nearly collapsed next to a river. Struggling to catch her breath, Eli cupped some of the water and splashed her face. "I'm so stupid…I should've just….stayed away from her…" Eli felt her heart pounding in her chest. She clutched her shirt, and started taking deep breaths. The moon reflected off of the water, creating a beautiful scene in front of Eli. "Nozomi…" she whispered. Whenever she saw Nozomi, she felt like the world became colorful again. Ever since her grandmother died, Eli has felt nothing but depression and sadness. But whenever Nozomi crossed her path…everything became lucid again.

"I love you Nozomi…" More tears found their way down Eli's face, and plopped onto the ground. She started whimpering, and her heart felt as though it was about to give out.

Eli trudged wearily back to her house. When she entered, her mom came out with some crepes. "Eli…these are for you…"

"Thank you mom…." Eli grabbed a crepe and gave her mom a kiss on the cheek. Eli peeked up at her mother's face…red eyes, red nose. Everyone was still having a hard time with her grandmother's death. Eli gave her mother a tight hug, then went upstairs into her room.

Her bags dropped to the ground. Eli walked over to her desk and picked up a picture of her and Nozomi. The piece of folded up paper that lay next to the photo was the reason Eli had become so distant from everyone. She slammed her hand down on the paper. They had to do it. Her family had to go. Her grandfather in Russia needed them. Eli unfolded the paper and stared gloomily at the neat writing on the paper.

 _Congratulations for getting accepted into_

 _Moscow State University!_


End file.
